Top: Cassio Dias rides to the World Championship
Was it exciting? If you’ve been studying the rules, rankings, country and people of American rodeo every week for at least half a year, then yes. For the rest of the world, it was just skinny guys hopping around the ring on muscular bulls. And the latter was particularly impressive this time. After the preliminary rounds in Fort Worth, the final of the world series of professional bull riding by the PBR (Professional Bull Riders) took place in Arlington, Texas. Rodeo has been the state’s official “state sport” since 1997 – if not here, where else? The Dallas Cowboys football team usually plays in the NFL at AT&T Stadium, and a Super Bowl (XLV in February 2011) and two Wrestlemanias have also been held there. 80,000 seats make the stadium the largest in the US professional sports league. Depending on the event, up to 108,000 people can squeeze in. Only college stadiums are larger.
The rankings and rules said the following: Cassio Dias went into the finals as the clear leader. 560.5 points put the 22-year-old Brazilian ahead of the second-placed rider in the world rankings, 18-year-old John Crimber from Texas. It quickly became clear that the two rookies would have to settle the matter between themselves. The quiet top performer against the darling of the ladies, the fans and the league. There were four elimination rounds to complete, four slavering breeding bulls that had to be ridden one-handed for at least eight seconds to complete the freestyle. The winner of the event also received 400 extra points for the rankings. In the third preliminary round, it almost looked as if Dias’ dominance had come to an abrupt end. Norse God, a particularly aggressive animal, threw him into the dust and trampled the scrawny man directly in the back. He stayed down for a while. Crimber’s chances of winning the title had improved considerably for a moment.
Invaluable
The absence of the show that had been hyped for months, the hillbilly equivalent of a Super Bowl halftime show, was somewhat embarrassing. It was announced with great fanfare that former UFC martial arts star Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone would ride his former boss’s bull investment called Dana White’s Twisted Steel. But that didn’t happen: the delicate MMA gladiator allegedly tore his entire biceps off the bone while training on the cattle. Authentic photos showed him black and blue from head to toe.
A real champion is not even impressed by serious injuries. Just in time for the final round, Cassio Dias was back on the cow’s back. But Crimber exceeded himself. In the third main round, he delivered the ride of the year on Big Bank to an incredible 95 points, and was temporarily in first place, while Dias, with a merely solid performance, held eighth place. The final round was to decide everything. If Crimber had completed a valid ride here and thus bagged the 400 extra points for the overall victory, he would also have climbed to the top of the world rankings and thus had the title in his leather pouch. Ricky Vaughn – the bull – and Sage Steele Kimzey – the human – did him no favors. The animal threw Crimber into the dust. Kimzey won the event. Crimber’s disappointment was endless. He kicked the gate angrily and was unresponsive for the rest of the evening.
Cassio Dias was also at a loss for words. He commented on winning the World Championship and the title of “Rookie of the Year” with “It’s just God, God, God!” Paulo Crimber, the runner-up’s father, translated from Portuguese and was happy for his modest colleague despite his frustrated son. The world champion had some mixture of Mexican beer and a US energy drink (both main sponsors) poured into his trophy and was allowed to sip. His wife ran over, hugged the taciturn Brazilian and his huge check for a million US dollars.
The most beautiful, brutal, athletic animal was also crowned. Hardly anyone was surprised that the albino bull Man Hater and thus also his owners Jane Clark and Gene Owen were awarded. Man Hater achieved the highest average score from eight successful throws. He always jumped steeply, turned and shook quickly and hardly injured anyone. A true sportsman. Owen and Clark had been looking for a world champion four-legged animal for ten years. Now they have him. Man Hater’s stock, his sperm, is now of inestimable value.
The spectacle never ends
Dear readers, you still haven’t had enough of sexy cowboy boys, brutal bulls, ultra-conservative farmers, mild animal cruelty, amoral sponsors, bought arenas and all the other misery in the hinterland of the USA? As is usual in every modern sports circus, the spectacle never ends. Following the World Championship, the bull riders’ team competition begins on July 12 in Oklahoma City.
